While Australia has introduced legislation to prevent the clearing of forest areas for agriculture, development and mining, this is having a limited effect, according to a new study by the University of Queensland.
The study saw researchers use satellite mapping and land clearing data to analyse the loss of vegetation in Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia. Mapping was applied to clearings of more than 20 hectares, following which the team investigated whether said clearings contravened national or state and territory laws.
Non-compliant
“Of the 1.5 million hectares of land clearing we examined, 65% was potentially non-compliant with at least one law,” commented Hannah Thomas of UQ’s School of the Environment, who led the study. “Only 19% of compliant clearing had been formally assessed and approved, with the remainder cleared under specific exemptions.”
The researchers found the clearing deemed potentially non-compliant most likely required assessment under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act 1999, but this did not occur.
“Queensland had by far the highest rates of deforestation with 75% of cases exempt from assessment under the state’s main vegetation management law,” Thomas added. “In contrast, most clearing in the Northern Territory was assessed, although approval was almost always the outcome.
“In those cases, development of the agricultural and mining sectors across northern Australia was driving the clearing, and particularly linked to pasture development for beef cattle.”
Environmental commitment
Professor Martine Maron, who also worked on the report, emphasised the critical need to reduce tree clearing rates, particularly in light of Australia’s commitment at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) to halt and reverse forest loss by 2030 and prevent further species extinction.
“There is an urgent need to reduce land clearing rates in northern Australia if we are to meet our international commitments,” she said. “Australia must ensure existing laws are applied, and support land managers to keep and care for forest and woodland on their properties.”
The research was supported by WWF Australia and was published in the Conservation Biology journal. Photo by WWF Australia.
Eight months of deforestation in Queensland, Australia 😢 pic.twitter.com/4CRSGWsE1M
— Alexander Verbeek 🌍 (@Alex_Verbeek) August 29, 2024
